After the Milwaukee Bucks suffered a foolish loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night, they came into State Farm Arena in Atlanta last night for a matchup with the Hawks. Through the first three quarters, it looked like the Bucks had this game handled. Even though the Hawks outscored Milwaukee in the final quarter of action, it wasn’t enough as Milwaukee obtained their 47th win of the year after defeating Atlanta 122-113.
This win puts an end to the Atlanta Hawks four-game win streak. Atlanta falls to 34-40 after the loss. They are five games ahead of the Brooklyn Nets for the final spot for the Play-In Tournament, and they their a game behind the Chicago Bulls for the ninth seed in the Eastern Conference. Milwaukee will take on the Washington Wizards on Tuesday night, while the Hawks will play the Bulls on Monday night.
Milwaukee Bucks Take Dynamic 122-113 Win Over the Hawks
Through the first six minutes of the game, it would be the Hawks who held the lead with their largest lead to that point being five points. During the last six minutes of the first quarter, the Bucks would start to gain momentum. Milwaukee’s had their biggest lead of the quarter by seven points, but they held a five-point lead at the end of the quarter.
Milwaukee lead the entire second quarter with their lead only growing. At one point they held an eighteen-point advantage over the Hawks and outscored Atlanta 26-17. The Bucks would walk into the locker room at halftime with a 59-45 lead. The Hawks biggest issue through the first two quarters was their poor shooting. Atlanta shot 36 percent from the floor compared to Milwaukee’s 51 percent. The Hawks also shot 24 percent from beyond the arc, while the Bucks made 30 percent of their three-point attempts.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led all scorers with 15 points, while also pulling down 10 rebounds in the first half as well. Khris Middleton had 12 points on five of six shooting with two made threes. Dejounte Murray and Bogdan Bogdanović each had 12 points for Atlanta.
The Bucks continued to carry a lead all throughout the third quarter. They had their biggest lead of the game at 19 points, and by the looks of it, it seemed like this game was pretty much done for as Milwaukee Bucks went into the final quarter with a 15-point lead. However, the Hawks were still in this one as they brought that 15-point lead down to a five-point deficit with less than eight minutes remaining.
Milwaukee continued to score and brought their lead back to double digits. With 40 seconds on the clock, the Bucks had an eight-point lead, and after Patrick Beverly knocked down two free throws, this game was over as Milwaukee would handle their business on the road and get the win.
In nearly 38 minutes of action, Giannis Antetokounmpo dropped 36 points along with recording 16 rebounds, eight assists, a steal, and three blocks. Khris Middleton had 21 points on nine of 10 shooting, with three made three-pointers. Middleton also had six rebounds, six assists, and a steal. Patrick Beverly who took the start for Damian Lillard had 18 points, five rebounds, five assists, and a steal during the win. Bogdan Bogdanović led all scorers with 38 points while also putting up 10 rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Dejounte Murray had 20 points, eight rebounds, and 12 assists in the loss.
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